We know little about Franklin - We know little about...

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Unformatted text preview: We know little about Franklin's early life aside from what he tells us in his Autobiography . This book, written when Franklin was much older, is his most famous piece of writing, and is the first major secular autobiography in American history. While it is classic of American literature, we do know for certain if Franklin told a completely honest and accurate story of his life. Like just about every politician since his time, Franklin knew how to spin stories the right way. With this warning in mind, we can read Franklin's Autobiography for clues to his early years. As Franklin points out, he was born into a religious home. His parents were Puritans. Many people imagine Puritans as severe and stern people, but this stereotype was generally not true. They were very religious, though; Franklin's parents hoped that young Benjamin would become a minister. For families like the Franklins, it was a sign of young Benjamin would become a minister....
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